


Through The Distance

by NotEvenThat



Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Alec Spoils The Hell Out Of Magnus, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Presents, Christmas fic, Domestic Fluff, I've never written anything this fluffy, Long-Distance Relationship, Magnus's POV, One Shot, Poor Magnus, Soulmate AU, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Wealthy Alec, mundane AU, sooo fluffy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-04
Updated: 2017-09-04
Packaged: 2018-12-23 21:34:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,403
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11998401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NotEvenThat/pseuds/NotEvenThat
Summary: Alec Lightwood decided the moment that he met his soulmate that he was going to give him the world. Even when he moves across the globe, he keeps his promise.





	Through The Distance

**Author's Note:**

> It's months before Christmas and yet- Here's a Christmas fic.  
> I have literally never written anything this fluffy. Its just pure fluff. Thats it.

Magnus Bane met his soulmate when he was nineteen. He was a poor college student with no family to mention and on the day that they met, Magnus was sicker than he'd ever been in his entire life. He hadn’t done his hair that morning. He’d simply thrown it up in a messy bun. His face was void of any makeup and even his clothes, which he normally carefully chose every morning, were simple and and hung off his body for comfort and not appeal.

Yet, when he turned around, his mind blurred from far too much cough medicine, he’d felt his soul rising in his chest. Or at least, that's what it felt like. Scientists still argued about what actually happened when you met your soulmate but to Magnus, it had been a very simple thing. He’d clutched his coffee cup in his hand and he’d turned around to flee back to his cold apartment, when he felt himself slamming into the chest of a very tall muscular man. Then, when he’d look up, he’d… felt himself fall in love. Right there, with snot probably dripping from his face.

Alec claimed that the same happened to him but Magnus struggled to believe that. He looked awful the day that they met. He knew it because hours later, when they’d finally stood from their seat in the cafe and stumbled into the cold dark street, Alec had taken a picture.

It was taken right in front of the cafe, with only the lights from inside shinning out on them. It was blurry because Magnus had looked up and realized what Alec was doing and tried to push him away. He was smiling, though. Alec was grinning up into the camera and Magnus was laughing, trying to shove Alec away as Alec reached out to pull him in.

In the photo, he had Alec’s blue scarf wrapped around his neck and now, the same scarf was hanging by the door, right next to the picture that Alec had framed for him the next time they met.

 

Alec had insisted on following Magnus home. Of course, neither of them wanted to leave each other but by the time they’d left the cafe, Magnus’s fever had started to spike again and even walking had become difficult.

In the end, Magnus had agreed simply because he really didn’t want Alec to leave at all.

Magnus’s apartment was small and gave away the fact that he was very obviously poor. He had enough inside to make his home functional but he really didn’t have anything else. Magnus could tell just looking at Alec, at the expensive sweater framing his body and the designer boots on his feet, that he was wealthy. That was another reason that Magnus had hesitated in agreeing for Alec to follow him but the man hadn't even blinked when they’d walked inside. He’d helped Magnus over to his small couch and forced him to lay down, even though Magnus kept saying that he was okay.

Magnus fell asleep shortly after that. Every once in awhile, he would open his eyes and find Alec rubbing his back or just staring at him. Once, he'd thought that he saw Alec writing something but for the most part, Magnus slept until the next morning.

When he finally woke up again, it was to the sight of Alec standing in front of him, struggling to hold the many cups and bags that he had carried inside. There were flakes of slowly melting snow resting in his hair and his jacket was wet and dripping onto the carpet.

Magnus slowly sat up and almost instantly, Alec had launched into an panicked explanation. “I wasn’t sure what kind of soup you liked but- You’re uh, suppose to drink chicken noodle soup when you’re sick. So, I got some of that.. And then, yesterday you said that you like spicy soup, so I got you some of these spicy noodle but the words are all in Japanese, I think. So, I don’t really know what I got you and-” Alec struggled to place down the bag of soup, almost dropping the two plastic cups that he was holding in the process. “And then, I didn’t know if you liked tea or coffee. I didn’t ask you what you were drinking yesterday, I should have. So, I just uh- I got you both?”

Magnus stared, wide eyed as Alec finished and blushed. He looked somehow like he thought that Magnus was going to be mad at him for doing this. “And, I got some more cough medicine and some advil too..” He added weakly, blushing even more as he said it. 

“Alec..” Magnus didn’t know what to say. He didn’t know what to say at all.

He had… never had anyone try to take care of him or be worried enough that he was sick to go out and get him soup and medicine... Never. Not even when he had been a child. The people in the foster home hadn’t cared that Magnus was sick and he was left dealing with it himself. It had always been that way.

Magnus didn’t notice that there were tears in his eyes until Alec’s eyes went wide and he fumble to put the drinks down quickly before rushing to the other side of the coffee table. “It’s okay, Magnus! I didn’t-” Alec faltered for a moment as Magnus looked down and struggled to brush the tear away before they fell. “I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to upset you. I-”

Magnus laughed wetly and Alec fell silent. “You’re fine, Alec.. You’re just really sweet.” Magnus sniffled and looked out at the table where Alec had placed everything he bought, laughing quietly as he spotted the tissues resting in the box with the cough medicine.

“I bought a couple of other things too..” Alec added sheepily. 

 

Alec lived halfway across the country. His parents were in New York for a business meeting and Alec had come with them but they really lived in California and soon, they were all moving to the UK. When Alec told him, he’d actually offered to get an apartment in New York and stay but Magnus told him to go.

They’d know each other for a week but Magnus could tell that Alec’s family was very important to him. He couldn’t expect him to live in a different country from them, just for Magnus. They’d make it work. That's what they kept saying to each other but Magnus didn’t know how they would. He didn’t have wifi at his house. He didn’t have a good phone or even a laptop. They couldn’t even video chat with each other.

Magnus hadn’t said any of that out loud but the day after Alec had left, Magnus received a package. He took it inside and cut it open gently, reading the note that rested on the top before he even looked at what was inside. “You have to keep it. It's a selfish gift, so that we can talk while I’m gone.”

Inside, there was a laptop and what Magnus was sure was the newest Iphone. Then, there was a note saying that someone was coming later that day to set up Magnus’s router and a bunch of poorly drawn hearts.

It took almost an hour for Magnus to set up his phone and figure out how to facetime Alec (he thought that he might have to wait for the wifi to be set up but of course, when he slid up to the notifications and messages he saw a widget, informing him that he had unlimited data). Instantly, Alec accepted the call and his grinning face came into view.

Magnus tried to hold a firm persona. Alec had spend more money than Magnus’s lease had costs but it was hard not to smile back when Alec looked so honestly overjoyed to see him. “You didn’t have to do that.”

“But now I can see your face! Magnus, I get to see you everyday now! Of course, I had to do it!”

Magnus pursed his lips. It was hard to fight that logic.

 

Every single week, without fail, Magnus received a package from Alec.

Sometimes, it was a book or postcard that Alec had thought Magnus would like. Other times, it was a plate of chocolate covered strawberries or even a delivery of tea and Magnus’s favorite foods from a restaurant somewhere in New York. It was always something though, every single week, without fail.

Then, December first rolled around and it had got out of hand. Everyday, there was a gift at Magnus’s door. The first gift had been a very large blanket that was ridiculously warm and comfortable. At first, Magnus had thought that maybe Alec had just slipped and sent him two things in one week.

Then, the next day, there was another package at his door. This time, it was a box set of Christmas inspired makeup. There was a candy cane inspired lipstick set and eye shadows that shimmered green and red. In the note, Alec explained that he knew nothing about makeup (Magnus already knew that) but that the box was too Christmas-y for him not to send.

It took four more days for Magnus to realize that this was going to be an everyday thing.  

When Alec’s face finally loaded on his screen, Magnus glared. “You can’t send me something everyday, Alec.”

Alec paused for a moment and then cocked his head, “What?”

“The gifts. The gifts Alec, you can’t send me one everyday.”

Alec blinked, “Why not?”

“Because that's ridiculous!” Alec frowned and Magnus’s took a deep breath. “Alec, I love the gifts but you can’t send me something for every day of December. That's too much. Thats too much money, I don’t even know if I can send you something for Christmas.”

“Oh.” Alec frowned for a moment and then shrugged, “You don’t have to send me something. I don’t mind. I like sending you stuff, though. I’ve never had anyone to buy gifts for. My siblings can just buy whatever they want but with you, I get to buy you stuff!” He smiled lopsidedly, “I don’t mind.”

“I do mind.” Magnus sighed and ran his hand through his hair. “Alec, It makes me feel bad. I don’t think I can buy you anything at all and you’re sending me something everyday.”

Alec watched for a moment and then said simply, “You don’t have to buy me anything. Just being with you is enough.”

Which was a very sweet thing for him to say but it really didn’t help.

 

On the twelfth day, Magnus received a very ugly purple sweater and a note from Alec that read, “I normally trust Izzy whenever it comes to anything to do with fashion but she says that this is an ugly sweater and that it shouldn’t be one of your gifts. I disagree, though. It's very soft on the inside and the purple color is very nice and I think it would go well with that dark lipstick that you like.”

The sweater was horrendous but the next time that Alec video chatted with him, Magnus threw it on and told him that he loved it. It was worth his personal sense of fashion to see how excited Alec got when Magnus said that he liked it.

 

On the twentieth day, Alec stepped it up a bit. He knew that Magnus hadn’t decorated his apartment for Christmas. Magnus said that he didn’t want too, which was true but he also couldn’t afford to decorate and didn’t _want_ to decorate when he knew that he was probably going to spend the holiday alone.

Alec sending him gifts had been the most that anyone had ever done for Magnus on Christmas. He had never even gotten a gift for Christmas before this month but Alec was a country away. He was sure that Alec would send him something amazing on the twenty fifth but he also knew that he would still be alone.

It was hard to want to celebrate the holiday knowing that.

Alec knew that Magnus had class that day and he knew the exact time that Magnus would be returning home.

Magnus had no clue how Alec did it. Alec didn’t even have a _key_ to Magnus’s apartment but when Magnus unlocked his door and stepped through the threshold, his apartment had been transformed. There was garland hanging across the whole ceiling and there were Christmas lights, glowing white and frosty above him. There were red carpets, many of them, laying across his whole kitchen, the bathroom, his bedroom and in every crevasse of his house that wasn’t necessary to walk on, there was fake snow, _piles_ of it glittering with silver dust.

Then, in his living room, there was a Christmas tree large enough that it practically bent as it hit the ceiling and under it were the rest of Magnus’s gifts for the week, all helpfully labeled with the day that he was to open them.

Magnus sat down at his kitchen table and trembled as he opened his laptop. When Alec’s face finally popped up on his screen, Magnus was crying but he forced himself to speak calmly as he said, “It's going to take me forever to clean up all of the snow..”

 

Christmas morning, Magnus woke up and brewed himself a pot of coffee, forcing himself to move slowly as he sat down in the living room. There was only one gift left under the tree. Magnus had almost expected Alec to go overboard for the actually day of Christmas but it seemed that today, Alec had simply left him with one box.

It was smaller than most of the boxes that he’d gotten all month and Magnus found himself wondering what Alec could have possibly gotten him that would be that small. He wanted to rip the gift open right away but Magnus forced himself to curl up with the blanket that he had gotten on the first day and relax. It was going to be the only thing that Magnus got today, he didn’t to rush it.

He slid his phone out of his pocket and frowned when he saw that there were no messages there. He had at least expected Alec to text him or maybe leave him a voice mail but there was nothing.

He was probably busy with his family, Magnus understood that. He had done so much for Magnus all month, he couldn’t blame him for focusing on something else today. Magnus sent him a quick message, saying that he missed him and to call when he could. 

 

An hour later, Magnus finally opened the gift. It was a shallow box with tissue paper covering the inside. When Magnus pulled the paper away, he saw a.. receipt sitting on the inside. Magnus slowly reached out and looked at it. It was crumpled and there was coffee spilt across part of it. It was from the cafe that Magnus and Alec had met at and there was one order for a straight black coffee on it. Then.. on the other side, Alec had written something in small font, scrolling across the entirety of the space on the receipt.

“Magnus. I hope thats how you spell your name or this is already a bad start. I’m a writer, I don’t know if you know that or if you’re ever even going to read this but sometimes, when I get overwhelmed I like to sit and write out my thoughts. You’re asleep right now and I can’t find any paper in your apartment and I didn’t want to look through your things without permission ~~but I am very overwhelmed right now. I bet you can tell, by how much I’m rambling.~~

“When I was little, ~~Jace~~ my brother met his soulmate. I remember he was so happy when he met her. We were only seven and I don’t think any of us really knew what soulmates were but he was so happy and I remember being so excited to meet my soulmate because I wanted to be that happy.

“Then, I got a bit older and I realized that I was gay and I started to dread it. I’m sorry if thats weird, I don’t dread it now, not at all but, back then I did and I rememeber being scared to go anywhere because I thought that I was going to meet my soulmate and then my parents would know that I was gay.

“It didn’t help that I was depressed and borderline suicidal at the time.  ~~I don’t even know what I’m writing anymore.~~

“ ~~Today I just kept thinking that.~~  I met you today and you kept telling me that you hadn’t done your makeup and that normally you dress so much better but you were so pretty Magnus. I’ve never seen someone look so beautiful and if you normally look better than that, I think I just might have a heart attack when I see it.

“My family is moving soon and I don’t even know how I’m going to tell you that. I’ve known you for a few hours and yet, I still don’t know how I’m going to handle being that far away from you. What if you get sick again and I can’t be here? What if it's your birthday and I can’t be there? ~~What if I miss something important or I move away and you realize that your life was better before you were tied down to someone you barely know in another country?~~

“I don’t have much room left on this and I don’t even think there’s a point to get to here. ~~I just feel really overwhelmed right now and I’m glad that you fell asleep because I don’t think I could handle staring at you for another moment without crying.~~

“You live in such a small apartment and you don’t have a lot of stuff and you said that most of your money is going to student loans even though you don’t make a lot and, Magnus, I just want to give you the world because I can tell that you deserve it. You deserve everything that I can give to you and you deserve so much more ~~and now I actually am crying~~ and I don’t think I'm even writing illegibly anymore but I love you and I know it's far too early for me to say that to you, so maybe thats why I’m writing it down on a note that I will never give to you but I love you. I love you so much.”

Magnus slowly put the paper down on his lap and stared at it. He was crying far before he got to the end of the note but he didn’t even have a chance to let himself process his feelings, he didn't even have a change to think about what he could possibly say in response to that because the doorbell rang and when Magnus didn’t open the door, it rang again, more insistent this time.

He stumbled to his feet slowly made his way towards the front door, not even bothering to wipe the tears off his face as he opened it. Then, there was Alec. There was a bouquet of red roses in hand but he dropped them the second that he saw Magnus crying. Magnus didn’t even let Alec ask him what was wrong, he just threw himself into Alec’s chest and clenched his eyes shut as he felt his soulmates arms wrap around him. “What about your family?” Magnus wasn’t even sure how Alec understood him through how garbled his speech was but he did. He always did, somehow. 

Alec’s voice was soft in his ear, “I got to spend the morning with them. Now, I get to spend the day with you.” He said it, like it was the simplest thing in the world. Like, _of course,_ he would come to Magnus because Magnus was just as important as his family. He said it, like Magnus should have already known that. 

When they finally pulled away, maybe hours later, Alec brushed the tears away from Magnus’s face and opened his mouth to say something but Magnus cut him off before he could. “I love you too, Alec.”

**Author's Note:**

> Welp, I hope you all enjoyed the only purely happy fic I've ever written (Kidding but not really, I guess? I don't think I've ever written anything this sweet).  
> I'd love to hear your thoughts. Maybe, I should give fluffy stuff more of a shot.


End file.
